Lake Bolac vs Maffra
Property investment comparison - Lake Bolac, VIC 3351 vs Maffra, VIC 3860
Head-to-head across core investment metrics: Lake Bolac wins 2, Maffra wins 2. The better choice depends on whether you're optimising for cash flow, growth, affordability, or liquidity, the table below highlights the winner on each metric.
| Metric | Lake Bolac | Maffra |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $495K | $500K |
| Median unit price | $365K | $360K |
| Gross rental yield (houses) | 5.64% | 4.98% |
| Gross rental yield (units) | 3.99% | - |
| 1-year house growth | - | +12.5% |
| 3-year house growth | - | +10.6% |
| Vacancy rate | 2.8% | 1.5% |
| Population | 368 | 5,384 |
Lake Bolac vs Maffra: what the numbers say
The median house price is $495K in Lake Bolac and $500K in Maffra, so Lake Bolac is the cheaper entry point, with Maffra houses about 1% dearer.
For units, Lake Bolac sits at a median of $365K against $360K in Maffra, which makes Maffra the more affordable unit market and Lake Bolac the pricier one.
On cash flow, Lake Bolac leads: houses there return a gross rental yield of 5.64%, compared with 4.98% in Maffra, a gap of 0.66 percentage points.
Rental vacancy is 1.5% in Maffra and 2.8% in Lake Bolac, so landlords in Maffra face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.
Maffra is the bigger suburb, with a population of 5,384 against 368, roughly 15 times the size of Lake Bolac; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.
In short: Lake Bolac for rental income, Lake Bolac for a lower purchase price, Maffra for the tighter rental market. Which matters more depends on whether the investor is buying for cash flow, capital growth or affordability.
Keep exploring
- National investment guide - top suburbs across every metric
- Take the suburb finder quiz - 5 questions to match your goals
- How our investment score works
- Property investment glossary - every term defined
Compare any 2-4 Australian suburbs
Build your own multi-suburb comparison with the full interactive tool.
Open interactive comparison